Producers gamble on a 'Hedwig' replacement

It’s logical that a Broadway producer would want a major star in his or her show, because big names sell tickets.

But look a little closer, and things get more complicated. Because when a star leaves – and they always do – a producer is left with a huge hole to fill, and must decide: Do I gamble with a replacement, or just close up shop?

That was the decision facing David Binder, the lead producer of "Hedwig and the Angry Inch," whose star, Neil Patrick Harris, will be leaving the musical Aug. 17, after 4 1/2 months, as scheduled.

The risk is that the presumably moderate profit generated by Harris’ run will be drained away if Rannells doesn’t sell tickets, and sales drop below operating expenses.

In recent years, the short-run model has become very popular on Broadway, particularly for plays.

A movie or TV headliner signs a contract for six months or so, including rehearsal time, and, in a field where earnings are elusive — Broadway’s the only business I know where breaking even is considered a triumph – a producer, if he’s chosen his star wisely, can look forward to a modest gain.

Usually, when the stars leave – sometimes they’ll extend their contracts for short periods — the productions close, even if they’ve been doing turn-away business.

A typical example is the hit Tony-winning revival of "A Raisin in the Sun," with Denzel Washington, which closed last Sunday, after a run of just over three months. "All the Way," with Tony winner Bryan Cranston, is scheduled to close next Sunday after a successful run of 4 1/2 months.

The decision to replace Harris and keep going is particularly adventurous because he’s become so closely linked to his role — a tormented transgender East German rock singer – in what is as near to a one-man show as you can get while other people are also onstage.

Harris, who’d built a popular following as the star of the TV series "How I Met Your Mother," and as the host of several Tony Awards shows, was selling tickets rapidly before the musical opened.

From the first preview March 30, the show has sold out most performances, with demand only increasing after it received rapturous reviews and then Harris won a best-actor Tony.

So Rannells, one of the original stars of "The Book of Mormon," who’s received wider exposure with recurring appearances on TV’s "Girls," has, as they say, a tough act to follow.

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The long-anticipated Broadway engagement of "Honeymoon in Vegas" has been firmed up, with dates and a theater announced.

The musical, which stars Rob McClure (a Tony nominee for "Chaplin"), who grew up in New Milford, and Tony Danza, will begin previews Nov. 18 and open Jan. 15 at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre.

Coming off a very successful run at the Paper Mill Playhouse in Millburn last year, "Vegas" has a book by Andrew Bergman, based on his 1992 film comedy about a young man who finds himself competing for his fiancée against a smooth-talking gambler. (The film’s most memorable scene, the skydiving Flying Elvises, is reprised onstage.) The score is by Jason Robert Brown ("The Bridges of Madison County").